‘Divergent’ Spin-Off ‘Four’ May Finally Give Fans Some Answers

Fans of the YA Divergent series were recently excited to learn that the story wouldn’t quite be ending with the final book, Allegiant. Several months ago, author Veronica Roth — who apparently isn’t busy enough with the growing success she’s managed to earn by the ripe old age of 25 — revealed she was working on a spin-off book called Four, centered entirely around the male protagonist and consisting of seven stories from his point of view.

The book features events that take place both before and during the first Divergent novel and will hopefully help fill in the many gaps left in the story of Tobias “Four” Eaton’s life (who is played by English actor Theo James on film.) But, to the disappointment of Divergent readers everywhere, Roth recently confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter that its July 8 release will likely mark the official end of the series and the very last chapter in Tris and Four’s love story … in novel form, at least!

As Roth previously revealed, she initially began writing the series from Four’s position, but eventually decided to switch to the perspective of the female heroine, Tris (Shailene Woodley.) Allegiant, the last book of the trilogy, switches back and forth between the two main characters’ viewpoints, but some readers have previously taken issue with the lack of distinction between their two voices. Four will solve — or at least, help — that problem by diving deeper into the character’s history, with three stories that take place before the beginning of the trilogy, three additional that overlap with Divergent, and one adjacently related to Divergent.

“It was originally intended to be a couple e-books that would be released in the lead-up to the release of Allegiant,” Roth told The Hollywood Reporter. “But the stories ended up being very long, and I think everyone involved felt they could be something more than a couple e-books.”

While plenty of readers are surely anticipating the satisfaction of finally getting some answers to the many long-awaited questions about Four’s past, the upcoming book will also probably be a bittersweet read, as it could be the last they’ll read of the character. Though Roth admits that the door isn’t “totally slammed shut on Divergent forever,” she does confess she thinks it’s time for new material.

“To me, it feels like a really good way of tying everything up,” she said. “I’m excited to move on to something new, and work on something different.”

For now, fans still have plenty to look forward to though. In addition to the spin-off book coming out next week, Insurgent, the next installment in the film franchise, is currently shooting in Atlanta and is due out on March 20, 2015. The first movie, Divergent, garnered an impressive estimated $56 million in opening weekend ticket sales and this follow-up will likely surpass that significantly, particularly after all of the buzz surrounding Woodley in recent months.

There’s been no word yet on whether the book Four will also be adapted into film, but given the glowing reviews most fans gave James of his performance in Divergent, it’s safe to say that no one would protest having another movie starring just him.